Global Food Thickener Market size is likely to witness significant growth, expanding at a moderate CAGR during the forecast period. Food thickeners are agents used to enhance viscosity of liquid without altering its properties. It is used as a food additive which increases emulsification and suspension of the food to stabilize it.

The global food thickener market size is mainly driven by the increasing demand for packaged and convenience foods. Growing awareness towards healthy diet foods and various advantages offered by the product will positively influence the global food thickener market share over the forecast timespan.

Moreover, the demand for the product by diet-conscious consumers due to its low-calorie content and by patients due to the inconvenience in swallowing solid food is exponentially increasing, which proves to be a good sign for food thickeners market size in the coming years. Furthermore, the product is also in demand for babies who cannot digest mother milk directly and thickened milk, which is likely to increase the food thickeners market in the forecast timespan.

Based on the type of product, food thickener market is classified into starch, polysaccharide based, protein based, vegetable gum and pectin. In 2016, starch was largest segment by product type in the food thickeners market share. The easy availability, optimum functionality, relatively low prices compared to other products along with abundant supply across the globe are the main reasons for the popularity and sales of starch based product. These are also preferred since it does not affect organoleptic food properties negatively.

Based on the type of raw material, food thickener market size is segmented into natural and synthetic food thickeners. The naturally sourced is further divided into coconut oil, xanthum gum and oat fibers which are mostly derived from plants. Alginic acid and alginate acid are some of the prominent synthetic based product. Natural segment is leading the food thickeners market size due to its cost effectiveness, acceptance by both vegan and non-vegan consumers and equal nutritional value compared to other sources.

The prominent industries where food thickeners have vital applications are food & beverage, confectionary and bakery. Other applications of the product include convenience & processed foods, sauces, dairy & frozen desserts and marinades & gravies. Among these, dairy & frozen desserts is the largest application segment of the food thickener market. This can be attributed to wide usage of the product as starch and protein for thickening and improving other functional properties such as texture and flavor in products. Additional benefits of the product such as water binding, fat replacement, texturizing and emulsifying make it highly desirable in beverage industry.

North America was a major contributor of food thickeners market share in 2016, while Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region in the industry. The reason for North America being the biggest consumer of product is due to heavy consumption of starch, protein and polysaccharide based derivatives in a wide range of foods & beverages. The rising product demand in Asia Pacific can be attributed to the rising disposable income and enhanced spending pattern which has resulted in growing consuming a wide variety of foods and beverages product. Thus, manufacturers in Asia Pacific are focusing on health aspects, product innovation and improving the overall characteristics of product such as flavor, texture and other organoleptic properties. Thus, Asia Pacific is likely to be the fastest growing region over the forecast timespan.